The Iowa Constitution

The Constitution of Iowa is the
plan we have for our state government. The plan tells how the government should
be organized and who has certain duties. Iowa's first constitution was written
when Iowa entered the Union as a state in 1846. It was different from the rules
of government which had been followed when Iowa was a territory, and it was
different from the constitutions of other states. It was supposed to fit the
needs of people in Iowa.

Unfortunately, there were problems
with the first constitution of 1846. The people finally decided in 1857 that
it would be easier to start over again with a new constitution. A new plan
of government was written at a meeting in the Old Stone Capitol in Iowa City.
This new constitution is the one we live by today. It has been amended 36
times since 1857.

Just as the national government
had three separate branches, the 1857 constitution set up three branches of
government for Iowa: the legislative, the executive and the judicial. This
meant there was to be a General Assembly elected by the people to make laws,
an elected governor to carry out the laws, and a Supreme Court appointed by
the governor to decide disagreements over what the law really said. The new
constitution listed the qualifications for the people in each of these branches
of government, and it also described their duties.

The General Assembly

The Constitution of the state set
up a plan for government without many laws telling how things were to be run
or how people were to act. It was the duty of the General Assembly to make
these laws. As the years went by, new laws were needed to take care of new
problems. The General Assembly now meets every year to consider what new laws
are needed or what old laws should be changed.

The General Assembly is divided
into two separate parts: the House of Representatives and the Senate. The
people of the state elect members of the General Assembly. A representative
serves for two years, and a senator serves for four years. To be eligible
for election to the General Assembly a person must be a citizen, have been
a resident of the state for at least one year, and live in the district he
or she represents. A representative must be at least 21 years old, and a senator
must be at least 25 years old.

The Governor

The head of state government is
the governor. His/her responsibility is to carry out the laws passed by the
General Assembly—and the governor must read and sign each law as it
comes from the legislature. If the governor does not like a law, then he or
she may refuse to sign it. This power, called a veto, gives the governor a
lot of responsibility.

The governor also appoints Supreme
Court justices, heads of government departments and commissions. The governor is
elected by the people of the state. In order to run for the office of governor
a candidate must be at least 30 years old, a citizen of the United States
and a resident of Iowa for at least two years.

The Supreme Court

This branch of government makes
decisions about the law. If there is a question about the meaning of a law,
the judges make a final decision.

Members of the Iowa Supreme Court—called
justices— are appointed by the governor. The appointment must be approved
by a majority of the voters at an election. Each justice serves a term of
eight years.